stolen from every sort of place, among others from the Musee
d'Artillerie, whence some had gone so far as to borrow cuirasses and
helmets that had belonged to the warriors of the League. Of course they
all had to be fed and paid. The chief of the band was a midshipman in
the navy, on leave in Paris at the time the Revolution broke out, of the
name of Damiguet de Vernon, who died afterwards with the rank of general
in the army. Whenever my father went out, to go to the Chamber of
Deputies or elsewhere, this rabble turned out and saluted after a
fashion of its own, with drums beating and trumpets blowing. It was a
scene quite worthy of Callot's pencil. To get rid of this worthy set,
the midshipman was at once given a lieutenant's commission in the
mounted Municipal Guard, under pretext of a reward from the nation, and
clothes were bestowed on his band, wherewith they hastened to decamp on
the first sign of the introduction of anything like discipline into
their ranks.

Our regular routine began again too. After over a week's holiday, I was
put back to school, where we immediately made a revolution of our own,
by insisting that the bell which rang for class and mealtimes should be
replaced by a drum. If, as I went into school with my folding desk under
my arm, I came across the column of big boys coming down from their
class-rooms, I used to get many a cuff to the tune of "Take that, your
young Majesty!" or the slang saying of the day, "Have you seen
Leontine?"--this last from the name of Leontine Fay, a favourite actress
with young people. But, apart from that, my life was as monotonous as
ever it had been. The riots and attempts at insurrection which succeeded
each other with something very like regularity seemed to diversify it
but very little. Yet I did feel a certain excitement the first time I
witnessed one of these attempts at sedition. Our evening was just over
at the Palais-Royal, and I had gone up to my room, when loud shouts, and